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Death Preceded Safety Agency’s Warning on Ford Windstar

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s unusual warning last month to owners of more than half a million recalled Ford Windstars to quickly fix rusty rear axles before they could break was prompted in part by the death of a Massachusetts man.

Courtesy of the Bowman familyOn the day Sean Bowman was killed he had been scheduled to use the Windstar to pick up his daughters, Hope, left and Lilly, according to his wife, Justine.

Karen Aldana, a spokeswoman for the safety agency, said N.H.T.S.A. investigators inspected the vehicle in which Sean Bowman, 28, died and then decided to issue the warning. She said there was also a concern that the axle failure could increase the chance of a crash and that the agency needed to make sure consumers got the vehicles fixed. Ford had originally denied there was any danger involved should a rear axle break.

In an interview, she said Ford did not act quickly enough to notify owners of the danger because the recall notice to Mr. Bowman was postmarked three days after he was killed.

“My biggest concern on all this is how quietly this recall has been done, therefore a lot of people don’t know of the seriousness of this,” she said. “That to me is very, very scary. This is very dangerous.”

Wesley Sherwood, a Ford spokesman, said the automaker sympathized with the family. He said Ford was cooperating with “all government authorities” and there was widespread news coverage of the recall, which the automaker announced. He said “it would not be appropriate to comment further at this time.”

That was a U-turn for Ford. In May, a Ford spokesman insisted in an interview with The New York Times that there was no safety problem because “the operator retains control of the vehicle at all times” and “the few reports alleging loss of control are inconsistent with how Ford would expect these front-wheel-drive vehicles to respond.”

Ford’s change of heart was prompted by an investigation by N.H.T.S.A. that began early in May. That investigation began about one week after an article in Wheels noted that although there were more than 200 complaints from Windstar owners about the rear axles, but the agency had never investigated.

One Windstar owner who urged the agency and Ford to recall the vehicles was John Arout of Staten Island, N.Y., who contacted the Center for Auto Safety with his concern.

The rear axle on his 2001 Windstar broke, making him curious about the failure of such a major component. He searched the N.H.T.S.A Web site and found hundreds of complaints. He said he was stunned to find the agency had never investigated.

Under the recall, Ford is providing rental vehicles and buying back some vehicles. Owners can check if their vehicle is recalled by going here.

The states covered by the recall are Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia and Wisconsin, as well as Washington D.C.

Meanwhile, the agency continues an investigation into rusting front subframes causing a right-front suspension failure on 1999–2003 Windstars. The agency says some owners have complained they lost control of the vehicle. Ford has told the agency there is no safety problem.

The agency’s defect investigation process itself is being investigated. Earlier this year, the inspector general of the Transportation Department announced an investigation into the adequacy of “the actions taken by N.H.T.S.A” involving Toyota and unintended acceleration as well as “the overall process for identifying and investigating safety defects.”

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